Winning White Wines

Easy sipping.

Three white wines to consider—for patio sipping, for accompanying seafood, for opening in the moonlight. First, a remarkable marsanne from Road 13. The fruit comes from Similkameen Valley, which is steadily emerging as a serious B.C. wine-growing region all on its own. Road 13 makes several Rhone-type whites, and some seductive chenin blanc as well. But the marsanne exhibits full body and elegance, some spicy notes, and nice acidity, making it an ideal wine for spicy foods of all description.

Next: from Sonoma, the stupendously good Rodney Strong Sonoma County chardonnay. This winery has a Chalk Hill vineyard chardonnay as well, but the Sonoma County version shows tremendous character with a light but tangible oak treatment that encourages the yeasty notes, the citrus, and the pear to really announce themselves on a full, long palate. Hard to imagine a better match than grilled salmon, new potatoes made into a salad, and some fresh bread.

Lastly is Blue Mountain, which built its fame on the chardonnay and pinot noir programs, but is making a real statement with this year’s sauvignon blanc. It has the crispness of great Sancerre, but the hints of minerality give way to some startlingly fresh, vibrant lemon zest notes, and it all comes together with good texture, and a racy, long finish. A great effort. You can look for the pinot blanc as well, to make your own twin peaks on the deck.